Tattered Mist letters
by jade-0rchid
Summary: A companion story to Tattered Mist. Hopefully you will enjoy my experiment in writing.
1. Tattered Mist letters 001

DISCLAIMER: I neither own nor make any claim to **Ranma Nibunnoichi by Takahashi Rumiko. ** I just enjoy it. I also enjoy making up stories about the characters. I do not claim to be writing an official continuation of **Ranma,** if I did I'm sure the laughter alone would cause an earthquake. My characters will have a 'slight' tendency to be considered Out of Character and possibly a bit AU.

If I have spelt something terribly wrong please let me know. I hope you enjoy reading my attempt at writing. If you hate it then the correct option is to simply not read it. This story is fantasy and makes no attempt to be bound by the realities of life, if it did it would not be fantasy or at least not my fantasy.

I write for fun, I will update when I have the next chapter finished. I will do my best to make updates regularly but will only update when I am satisfied that it is ready.

Tattered Mist, the Letters

Dear Auntie

Ranma and I are on our way north to collect some scrolls Happosai wants him to study. We visited Happosai in the hospital and he is cherry and upbeat. I glanced at his chart while he was talking to Ranma and believe I know why he awarded him the grand master status and wants Ranma to have the scrolls. He has also entrusted a package to me that I am not to give to Ranma until he has learned at least three of the techniques.

I did not recognise Ranma when he met me at the station, he was still in his female form of course from the injuries but he had dyed his hair black and was wearing blue jeans and a sweater. He hasn't allowed me time to become depressed from being cursed, encouraging me to train, focusing on hand eye coordination and speed since we were sitting in the train.

When I do become depressed he soon has me laughing with stories from his training trip. His mood is much lighter and he is happier than I have ever seen him. Your confrontation last night was very beneficial he is much more outgoing since we left Nerima. Every once in a while when he is telling a story he gets a shadowed look in his eyes that tells me that he not telling me all of it but I will not pry. When he is ready he'll tell me what is bothering him I hope.

He is gathering supplies for the next part of our trip. According to Happosai this place is isolated and not easy to reach but we should be there in three to five days depending on how capable a hiker I prove to be. Once we leave the hostel we will stay at tonight he insists that I be in male form and become accustomed to the body and learn how to speak and act before we reach a populated area. I am still unsure how to feel about the curse but now that we know it isn't curable with water from the opposite spring I imagine I had better get used to it.

I know it was an accident but I am going to have to work hard to forgive my little sister. I do not think Ryouga wishes to meet Ranma right now, I know that he has held back a lot of his power in sparring him and Mousse even before Saffron, I do not think he would hold back right now.

Although I am cursed I am glad that Ranma did not have the misfortune to receive that water. He is beginning to accept his cursed form; I do not think he would be as accepting of the combined curse.

I see him coming back and will post at the next opportunity.

Kasumi

-

Dear Kasumi

Akane and Nabiki are not in school for awhile. The food Shampoo brought was drugged with the intent to have Ranma become aggressive enough t fight Akane the next time she malleted him.

Akane hurt Kuno fairly seriously and the police were called over Principal Kuno's objections. After talking to the witnesses the officers decided that the attack was provoked and did not arrest her. Nabiki also slapped a few people was sent home also.

I talked with the office and restrained my temper enough to explain the situation and then went to the Nekohaten to see Cologne. Shampoo tried to deny her involvement but Cologne persisted and she finally admitted what she had used. I am including an attachment with detailed instructions from Cologne to prepare an antidote.

When we reached the dojo we had to stop your sister from killing Genma much to Cologne's disgust, and we administered the antidote to every one there. Ukyou was also affected and the young lady that helps her in her shop was restraining her from killing a pervert in her room. Tsubasa will recover but hopefully not soon.

Please keep me informed on how you and Ranma are doing. I love you and worry about the both of you.

Nodoka

-

Dear Auntie

This is just a rushed post before we leave. The manager here has a laptop he is allowing me to post this with. I will prepare the antidote as soon as I am able to find the ingredients.

I have explained the situation to Ranma and we will be looking for Ryouga. As he is normally upset I dread to think what condition he is in now.

Ranma and I are training each other in how to act and speak, as her acting is a little exaggerated. He finally agreed that if I needed to learn then he would too.

I will post again as soon as possible.

We love you

Kasumi

-

Dear Auntie

I am doing well. Not only am I relearning how to walk and talk Ran-chan has insisted I learn enough of our schools teaching to allow me to get out of a situation or at least delay it long enough for him to come to my aid. I never knew how exhausted I could be at the end of the day.

We found the shrine with no problem and headed back south. Ran-chan insisted that my training was up to so we cut across instead of following roads.

Ran-chan entered a tournament and of course won. He was upset as there was enough of a mist that he had to enter as female. It was raining too much after lunch for the continuation of the match and as we were about to leave Ryouga showed up.

The two fighters who tried to stop him before Ran-chan could reach him were hurt some but they did keep the others safe. Ran-chan managed to keep Ryouga between him and the bystanders to keep inadvertent damage to a minimum. The fight lasted almost a half hour but Ran-chan won and I am sending Ryouga to the Nekohaten. I gave him the antidote and he is heavily tranquillised right now and should remain so for awhile.

Ran-chan was injured rather badly so we will be taking a train to our destination instead of walking part of the way as he intended. We would simply return but I do not think he would heal as well there.

I will post again as soon as possible.

We love you.

Kasumi

-

Dear Kasumi

Because of the injuries Kuno received, the school board did an investigation which had some decidedly good results. Kuno's father is no longer principal and Kuno is in mandatory therapy for his proclamation about having to fight Akane in order to date her. Akane is also in mandatory therapy for her rage disorder that was aggravated by Kuno who is also having to pick up the tab for all related cost.

I hope the beating I had to give your father won't irritate you too much but he is now repairing the dojo and Nabiki is putting out fliers for classes. She will be in the first class. The elder brother of one the boys Nabiki slapped decided to take retribution and attacked her in the mall. She is very upset about the black eye and intends to train to prevent a reoccurrence. As there were many witnesses to his attack, including store security, she will not be charged with the beating she gave him although she was cautioned to restrain herself next time. She has also opted to take anger management classes; she readily admits she lost her temper at the mall.

Elder Cologne's punishment of Shampoo is rather severe. She has lost Warrior status and is required to do the most menial jobs. She also has to care for Ryouga who remains heavily sedated while Elder Cologne is trying to come up with a long term treatment plan. He was under the effects of the potion too long and it is now permanent, apparently the dosage was many times as strong as what was intended as therapeutic for individuals who are considered too passive. Under their law she now owes Ryouga life debt until the effects can be reversed.

Ukyou is no longer a Kounji. You may inform Ranma that he has a new sister. The effect of the potion and the tranquillisers allowed me to get the entire story out of her; Elder Cologne was as shocked and angry as I was. Therapy and a good home will help her settle down and adjust, at least I hope so. Genma was not pleased, but his opinion no longer matters he has caused too much of the chaos.

Speaking of Genma, he and Mousse have both disappeared. Genma disputes Ranma's new title and maybe seeking him out to try to defeat him. Mousse is as bad as Ryouga and is blaming Shampoo's loss of status on Ranma. So keep a careful eye out for both of them. Bills that Genma made in Ranma's name are starting to appear and the courts have taken a hand in it. Someone has posted advertisements in papers everywhere that Ranma Saotome lives here. It would be well if Ranma was not seen for a while until I can get things straightened out here.

My solicitor is confident that not only will the earlier claims being made against Ranma will be thrown out but will also establish a pattern that should help clear Ranma of any obligations not incurred by him personally.

Your description of the fight was meagre compared to the stories told by the young men who delivered Ryouga to the Nekohaten. Their awe of Ranma's fighting ability and spirit was very apparent. His concern to keep others from getting injured impressed them highly and they had nothing but good things to say about my "daughter".

Please keep me informed on how Ranma is doing. I wish I could be there but circumstances here sadly prevent that. I love you both and hope to see you as soon as possible.

Nodoka

-

Dear Auntie

Your "daughter" is not happy being immobilised and pampered. With the left tibia and right clavicle fractured, four ribs and the left arm broke "she" is not allowed to lift anything heavier than a light book. In this case an instruction booklet that came with the laptop they gave "her" in appreciation for defending them from Ryouga.

Once Ran-chan sets that mind to learning other things than martial arts I may have definite competition at school. There is hope that I can also transfer my records and go to college. Namiko and her father were startled the first time I transformed but took it in stride. He is arranging legal identification for Ran-chan's and my alternate form and wants me to study and go to college. With your permission you will soon have a young daughter of seventeen, the apparent age of Ran-chan's female form named Ranko. I will be my twin brother although the school will have to know we are one and the same.

With as much school Ran-chan has missed he has accepted that he has much to learn that he missed. The local school has accepted him and after showing them Happosai's licence they have agreed that physical education would be redundant. The new school year begins in seven weeks and the school is sending over text books and study outlines to get Ran-chan at the proper level of preparedness.

We are doing well and Ran-chan is sleeping, the fight took more out of him than he wants to admit. He took a lot of ki blasts while manoeuvring Ryouga to protect everybody. Considering the damage to mountain behind the town I do not think there would have been many survivors. He is looking much better today than he was yesterday how ever and I expect he will be up in less than two weeks not the month and half the doctors predict.

He has not slacked off my training or I his. We agreed that while in male form I need to speak as a male and I pointed out the opposite was true. Although he accepted it though under protest, his grammar has improved and thinking about what he is saying and what the proper words are has done much to cure his foot in mouth syndrome. Namiko is really helping put him at ease, and has assured him that he would have no trouble with his studies.

If beating my father makes him start living again then feel free to apply as needed. I am glad to hear my sisters are getting help we all needed and didn't know it, getting away from it has helped me tremendously. I wish I could say I was sorry about Kuno but I can't, he brought it on himself now my sister can get on with her life.

Neither Ran-chan nor I look as we did, and any strangers leaving the public area are reported immediately. So we should be fairly safe. I hesitate to give descriptions as Ran-chan has shown how easy it is to change appearance but inquiries about Ran-chan or I will get to us quickly.

I'll share your E-mail with Ran-chan when he wakes. I'm sure he will be thrilled to have a new sister. He has always thought of Ukyou as his buddy, never as a fiancée and always tried to spare her feelings. I'm sure he will be as happy as I am that she is getting help and getting better.

I'll keep you updated on what's happening as I am able and once Ran-chan becomes familiar with the keyboard you should have twice as many E-mails.

Kasumi

-

Mom

Thank you for helping Uc-chan. I always considered her my best friend and she was abandoned by her family long ago. It is past time she had a family, tell her welcome to the family for me.

The last few days have been fairly busy for us. Ka-chan is a hard task mistress but I'm progressing. She says I'm teaching her as much but it isn't true. I hate being unable to move around and it is going to take for ever to get back in to shape, but she and Namiko are keeping me busy studying and writing. Namiko is like a sister, Ka-chan might be willing to let me slide but Namiko digs her heels in and won't let either one of us slack off.

She calls me Little Sis, and says when I can change back she'll call me Little Brother. It's embarrassing at times but she is answering questions I didn't know I had and wouldn't have been able to ask anyway. She's going to be a wonderful teacher, I know, because she is one already. She is a tyrant about grammar and pronunciation though and I have to write the answers to all questions in both hiragana and katakana as well as romanji. But she makes math fun and relates it to things I do or will do.

She corrects Ka-chan as quick as she does me, insisting on proper gender speech depending on form. And I think she is harder on Ka-chan than me when it comes to studying. All the medical terms Ka-chan has to know she has to know in English as well. Two of her friends are medical students and they came and talked to Ka-chan and I think they were impressed with her knowledge.

I'm glad Akane and Nabiki are getting help. The jerk that hit Nabiki deserved what he got. I hope the Old Ghoul isn't to hard on Shampoo, sure she can be impulsive at times but that is the way she was raised. Is Ryouga going to be alright? I knew he wasn't himself and didn't want to hurt him too much but I couldn't let him hurt others either.

When things settle down I would like to see you. I don't think I should return to Nerima right now though unless it's really important, it would too easy for things to return to the way they were.

Oyagi is probably off training to show me up. It's not likely he'll look for me very hard until he gets in better shape. In a week or two Mousses shouldn't be a problem, I would have a hard time avoiding him right now though.

Your "daughter" is getting very impatient to get out of this bed but won't until Ka-chan says I can. I'm not worried about what the doctors say, she knows more about me than they do.

I'll write again soon, love you Mom

Ranma

-

Dear Kasumi and Ranma

Genma, no longer Saotome, was last reported in Honshu. While there he made arrangements for Ranma to marry the son of a local food contractor. Apparently his stomach overpowered his sense of self preservation. I am surprised he didn't do this previously now that all the claims are turning up. One man came to take over the Dojo this morning and provided a bill of sale. Another appeared before he left demanding Akane marries him. Unfortunately for the second man but fortunately for Akane the police arrived about the first man in time to hear him claim that he had paid good money for Soun's daughter and would use force if necessary to get her. If they had been seconds later it would have set Akane's therapy back to zero. The two young officers, one of them was Jiro Masedo who went to school with you, were happy to fill in for Akane in using force to subdue him. Genma has also tried to sell my home, not knowing or probably not caring that it is in trust for Ranma and can not be sold. I am afraid that we have not heard the last of Genma's antics.

Mousse was also seen in Honshu so he likely followed Genma thinking Genma knew where Ranma was. He attacked a young man who apparently looked like Ranma and is now wanted for armed assault.

Yes! Yes! Yes! My daughter Ranko was entered on the Saotome register today at the same time Soun entered name of his oldest daughter's twin brother. Welcome to the families my dear ones.

Elder Cologne, Ranko, not Old Ghoul, assures me that when she learns her lesson she will be returned to warrior status but that she needs the time to learn to think things through and learn a little humility. Ryouga is doing as well as possible, Elder Cologne is proceeding slowly, she doesn't want to do anything without studying it first to be sure it won't have adverse actions.

I'm very proud of both of you and look forward to seeing you and meeting Ranma's big sister. She sounds like a remarkable young woman.

I'm due at my solicitors so I will close this. I look forward to when we can visit until then keep writing.

Nodoka

-

Dear Kasumi

A man claiming to be Ranma's father was here trying to find her. His description was somewhat off and then he mentioned that she was unmarried and that he needed to find a responsible husband for her. Ryu caught on to what he was up to and told him that he saw someone looking like her at a fight in Seoul the day before he left. The man disappeared along with a few valuables. So be careful.

I hope she is recovering well from the fight, it is still the most talked about topic around. If your girl friend is in trouble let us know and we will help.

Ichiro

-

Dear Ichiro

Be very careful about trying anything against him, he is almost as formidable as Ryouga and is much craftier. He is ronin and has no known scruples. He has actually sold Ranma several times and his training measures are nothing less than sadistic. Please pass the word that Genma is very, very dangerous and to avoid him. Ranma is mending and will be back on her feet very soon. If you hear of his location please let us know but do again impress on your friends that he is extremely dangerous and to keep clear of him.

Kasumi

-

Mom

Genma was misdirected to Seoul by some of Ka-chan and my friends. He was trying to sell me again and they are passing the word to let me know if he is spotted. Hopefully he can be kept looking in the wrong places until I'm back on my feet.

In addition to learning all the things a student my age is supposed to know and what a girl my age is supposed know I'm also trying to learn what Happosai thinks I should know. Please ask "Elder Cologne" if there is a way for me to increase the hours in a day, I need at least four more.

Seriously I am making progress, Namiko says I'm close to where I should be now as for as school is concerned. I believe I am making progress on the advanced techniques too.

Namiko's gynaecologist came over and gave me the "talk" with along with an exam. It was embarrassing but Namiko stayed with me the entire time and managed to keep me from getting too upset. Dr. Akira says, excluding the broken bones, that I'm very healthy. Ka-chan and I both have confided our secret with her since she is also a general practitioner and may be called to treat us for injuries so I'm not the only one that got the "talk" and exam. Ka-chan refused Namiko's offer to stay with her during her exam.

Do be careful, Genma could well try using one of you to draw me out. Tell Uc-chan to especially careful.

Love you Mom

A very impatient Ranko

-

Dear Auntie

Your "daughter" is totally outrageous! While Namiko's friends were here today she practiced Happy's techniques on them and me. Fortunately she is still not allowed out of bed and is very susceptible to tickle attack. She was able to actually take items from us at a distance, something I'm not sure if Happy could do.

If Elder Cologne shares the secret of adding more hours to the day with Ranko make her share with me too. SHE is a perfectionist at training but I am up to some of the advanced techniques that she knew when she arrived at the dojo. I don't have her stamina or strength but I am learning to use ki. She insists that what she is teaching me is not to fight but to give me a chance to escape.

Wish me luck! I start taking entrance and placement exams tomorrow. Several of Namiko's friends are confident that I can test out of several courses due to my reading of Dr. Tofu's books and the practical experience acquired through patching up Ranma on such a regular basis.

Ranko and I are going shopping tomorrow after I return from taking tests. She will have to be content to be in a wheelchair but will be able to stand for brief periods. We both need to get suitable clothing for school. While she doesn't need a uniform for this school she does need to dress appropriately and I foresee a major battle getting her to buy what she needs.

How is everybody in Nerima? How are Father and my sisters doing? We're so busy trying to get ready that we forget questions we mean to ask until after we've gone to bed and we keep pushing harder all the time. Give everyone our love.

Kasumi

-

Dear Kasumi and Ranko

Elder Cologne says she cannot think of any technique to add hours to the day but that if you come across one she will trade a dozen Amazon secret techniques for the privilege of learning it.

May you have the best of luck on your tests child. I'm sure you will do well.

Genma was sighted leaving an American base in Korea. When he was told to stop he attacked and several soldiers were wounded. The soldiers opened fire and wounded him but to what extent is not known. He managed to rob several houses of jewellery and other small valuable items. The Americans are furiously searching for him as are many others but he has managed to escape capture several times.

Mousse was seen not far from Nerima yesterday so we are on high alert. Elder Cologne has found several scrolls on hidden weapons techniques and we scanned them and have included them as an attachment. We hope they help in some way.

All claims against Ranma are now going straight to the police as are some of the claimants. Apparently some believe that it is perfectly legal to purchase a husband for their daughter. Most of the bar owners have stopped presenting their bills after a few were told that it highly unlikely that a seven year old would be able to consume that quantity. Many have since joined the search for Genma.

Several families filed suit against Soun even after they realised they had been swindled by Genma. Those suits were dropped quickly when Nabiki explained if they were not dropped they would be charged as accessories in Genma's crimes.

Do send us some pictures after you purchase your new clothing.

With all my love,

Nodoka

-


	2. Tattered Mist letters 002

DISCLAIMER: I neither own nor make any claim to **Ranma Nibunnoichi by Takahashi Rumiko. **I just enjoy it. I also enjoy making up stories about the characters. I do not claim to be writing an official continuation of **Ranma,** if I did I'm sure the laughter alone would cause an earthquake. My characters will have a 'slight' tendency to be considered Out of Character and possibly a bit AU.

If I have spelt something terribly wrong please let me know. I hope you enjoy reading my attempt at writing. If you hate it then the correct option is to simply not read it. This story is fantasy and makes no attempt to be bound by the realities of life, if it did it would not be fantasy or at least not my fantasy.

I write for fun, I will update when I have the next chapter finished. I will do my best to make updates regularly but will only update when I am satisfied that it is ready.

Tattered Mist, the Letters

Tattered Mist letters 002

Mom

I'm sorry I can't be there. I feel it is all my fault. If I had been there I could at least have kept Oyagi under control. I feel worse than worthless right now.

Mousse is going to try to take Shampoo. If he knows she is under life debt to Ryouga he may try to kill him. Mousse is a stronger and better fighter than Shampoo but has always been afraid of hurting her as most of his attacks can be fatal. He is as crazy as Kuno is in some ways, he is fanatical about her and may feel he has nothing left to lose.

I feel stupid asking this but do the authorities know to be on the look out for a panda? Since most people do not believe in magic just say the panda is trained and dangerous.

I feel very proud of Akane, Nabiki, Uc-chan and Konatsu.

Namiko says to assure you that she will take pictures.

Hi Auntie

I've sent Ranma to get dressed. I feel I did well on the test. I'm sure that Ranma could have passed most of them easily The language and math segments were not near as difficult as Namiko said they would be, I hope they gave me the right test I would not like to have to take them over. The only one that I have any concern over is the history, I hope I remembered enough from school as we forgot it would be required. I should know next week how I did on the test.

Please pass on Ranma's assessment of Mousse to Elder Cologne she may discount him since he is only a male, but if Ranma says he is dangerous then he is.

Give our love to everyone and I'll be sure you get pictures of "Ranko" in her new clothes.

Kasumi

Dear Kasumi and Ranko

Kasumi you were right she admitted that she may have dismissed him as a mere male but said if Ranma thought he was a higher threat then she must believe him.

Ranma was right, none of us thought to pass warnings on about their cursed forms. Nabiki has remedied that with pictures, we didn't say the panda was Genma but that where one was the other was sure to be near by. We also passed out warnings that the panda was trained and subject to unpredictable fits of violence.

Ranma will appreciate that Nabiki is in a world of pain right now. Elder Cologne was visiting and saw her and Soun sparring. She decided to spar against Nabiki and has taken her on as a student. Akane is a bit upset about it but the Elder Cologne told her that once she learns to control her anger she will test her. Akane had to help Nabiki return from the Nekohaten but she was smiling the whole way. Elder Cologne had Nabiki and Shampoo spar and they did so till neither could stand. Akane is going to learn meditation techniques that will help bring her emotions into balance.

Two young martial artist arrived this morning to study under Soun, well they wanted to study under Ranko, but since she is not available they ask Soun to teach them. Their names are Ryu Akiro and Rick "Viper" Tanaka, they said you know them. Soun is waiting on your reply on whether to train them or not.

Everyone is doing well and wish you the best of luck.

Nodoka

Dear Auntie

Have Father train by all means. They stood between Ryouga and everyone else and gave Ranma the time she needed to get there. They are strong fighters and Ranma approves of them as I do. Fill them in on Genma's and Mousse's ability to change, they've seen Ryouga, they'll believe. Have Elder Cologne brief them about Mousse's fighting abilities.

Ranma is sitting beside me and wants them to stay at the Nekohaten. They could give Elder Cologne the time she needs to save Shampoo. She just muttered "not that the Old Ghoul needs them, but just in case he's lucky."

Dear Auntie

Sorry about the incomplete E-mail your "daughter" tried to take the laptop to erase the part about the "Old Ghoul" and hit the transmit key by accident. She is worried and wish you would train more, I think she is right. Neither Genma nor Mousse are "honourable" martial artists and bystanders can and will be used by them in a fight.

Ranma says that Ryu needs to focus on strength and endurance training and that Viper needs speed and evasion work.

Your 'daughter' worries me, she is working on mental katas for mathematics, who else would decide to use a martial art technique to do mathematics. Humph! She just told me that principles are same, that each technique is built on the one below it and can not be done properly unless you learn the previous level thoroughly. I think this is a challenge response to Namiko saying she spent to much focusing on martial arts and not enough on math and science.

Ranko is keeping her hair dark although not black as she had it before so that she does not stand out too much for being different. I am sending the photo as an attachment.

We love you hope we can see you soon

Kasumi

Dear Kasumi and Ranko

Elder Cologne and I enjoyed really enjoyed the pictures. After considering that Genma does not know your present appearance we decided to hold off on showing them around.

I miss both you so much. Kasumi you look so very handsome and Ranko you are nothing less than beautiful. I am very pleased that you have accepted your curses and that you have decided to get on with your life.

Elder Cologne agrees with Ranma about my training. Ryu and Viper are now living and working at the Nekohaten and have had the pleasure of sparring with Elder Cologne. She also ask your permission to train them in endurance and speed techniques. I will be there several hours a day going through 'refresher' courses to get me up to where she believes I should be.

Kodachi is presently enjoying lodging in a secure facility. She attacked me at the dojo calling me a vile witch and redheaded harridan. The presence of officers talking to Soun did not deter her, she used a sleeping gas on them. Elder Cologne incapacitated her before she was able to inflict any damage and revived the officers who took her into custody on a variety of charges including assault, illegal weapons, drug use and possession of drugs. I will have to admit that you know some interesting people.

Nodoka.

Mom

Doctor Akira put me through an entire battery of test and MRI and gave me the go ahead to start limited exercises. I feel so out of shape. She did find some abnormalities that she wants to correct. There are a few foreign objects that need to be removed. A piece of what appears to be nail is embedded behind my left ear and a long sliver of metal at the top of my skull neither of which protrude into the brain. Most of the other things she can remove at her clinic and none of them will keep me out of school for more than a day except for the sliver on top. She wants me in for surgery on Friday and over night for observation at least for it.

Fortunately Namiko and Ka-chan agree that my studying is now up to date and I can focus on retraining my body a bit. Ka-chan is now able to learn some special techniques and will spar with me. I'm looking forward to school now that I'm caught up enough to understand what they are talking about.

Namiko has decided that Ka-chan and I are going out to celebrate my being able to move again. School starts in two weeks Ka-chan and Namiko both want me to work on my socialization skills, which while improved needs much more.

I hope Kodachi receives help she is seriously in need of it. By all means if Elder Cologne is willing to train them they could have no better teacher. They may hate me before she is through but her techniques will be invaluable to them. Speaking of training now that I can move around I should have all three techniques that I chose of Master Happosai's down in less than a week. The techniques do not require an enormous amount of strength or endurance just speed and the ability to use and direct ki.

Ka-chan sends her love along with mine.

Ranko

Dear Auntie

Ranko does not need to work on her endurance and her socialization skills are blooming. Namiko's idea of celebrating was her, her boy friend and her three friends and their dates for dinner and dancing. Ranko danced until I thought my legs would fall off.

She was upset with Namiko at first as she had to dress appropriately including make up but we all had to plead extreme fatigue in order to get her to leave once she started dancing. She was almost as fresh when we got home as she was before we left. Several of the new student workers want her to teach them, they saw us sparring when they came to start work. She told them that she could not teach until some school problems were settled but that she would let them know when she can.

I must have done something wrong or they may have given me the wrong test but I have to retake some of the test. Ranko's school wants her to retest on a few things, but said she did well and that the test were just clarify where she should be.

Dr. Akira wants Ranko in tomorrow. She says that it is possible that the sliver could stay there with no trouble but after seeing how active Ranko is she says there is a high chance of it shifting. I'll be there with her.

The MRI shows all types of old injuries Ranma received while training that were not treated and just allowed to heal on their own. She wants to repair what she can before Ranko returns to school. Given Ranko's rate of healing she'll be back to doing katas by Monday.

Ranko will be pleased to know that one of the fighters we watched will be here too. She came right after the others left to let Namiko's father know that her arm will be healed enough for to start working in two more weeks and he told her that he expected her to start Monday, she could file reports that had been getting back logged until her arm was fit enough. Mai is pretty and a talented martial artist. She lost getting to the final round due to a broken arm.

I remember Kodachi before she started going to private school she was nice and well mannered I don't know what happened to change her. I do hope she's not in too much trouble and can receive help. I hope you enjoy your training under Elder Cologne Ranko did even though she griped about, she is very good.

I'll let you know as soon as Ranko is out of surgery.

We love you and can't wait to see you again

Kasumi

Kasumi

Some rather unsavoury characters have been asking questions about you and Ranko. I've passed the word around to watch out for them and some feelers as to why they're looking for you.

Genma is still in Korea but he is near the DMZ. He was caught stealing some things and he managed to escape after injuring several people. The Americans are looking for him. It appears he may be headed into North Korea. They are not likely to appreciate him either.

Ichiro

Nodoka

Ranko came out of surgery just fine. The thin sliver turned out to be piece of stiff wire that had a slight twist possibly from a small cable. The piece behind her ear was part of a nail, that had a lot of scar tissue growing on it that would have soon caused trouble. Several pieces of wire similar to the one in her were embedded in her left thigh bone and hip. She also removed all the scar tissue that had built up around them.

The MRI scans Dr Akira did on me leads her to believe that the intrusions may have pressed against Ranma's brain while in male form but she saw no damage. When she is sure it is safe for Ranko to change back she'll do comparative scans just in case.

A friend of ours reports that Genma is near the DMZ and maybe attempting to cross into North Korea. He also say some people are inquiring after us that he does not trust so please keep your eyes open for strangers. If he doesn't trust them then I wouldn't either. Ask Ryu to get in touch with Ichiro, let him I'm asking him to, he'll know who I'm talking about.

Ranko is coming out of recovery now. I'll let you know more as soon as I can.

We love you

Kasumi

Ranko remembers what the wire came from, it was piece of cable Genma was using to teach him to avoid strikes while in the air. She remembers pieces breaking off when he snapped it like a whip and some would hit her. She thought she had removed all of them but didn't remember one hitting her in the head.

The nail she doesn't remember. Genma would pick up sticks and boards that were laying around to teach him to avoid weapon attacks. Whether they had nails or not apparently didn't concern Genma.

Ranko was still groggy and has gone back to sleep and I'm about to also, it has been a long day. The only wound that may take more than a day or two to heal is the one behind the ear as she had to remove some bone to get the scar tissue out. Ranko joked that she always knew she had a hole in her head.

Dear Kasumi and Ranko

Everything has been quite lately. I'm sore and bruised from my workouts with Elder Cologne but I'm much better now than before I stopped training. Maybe one day I'll be able to actually make contact with her, make that one maybe one year. She is continuously showing me how much more I have to learn and pointing out how much I have learned. Nabiki is just as sore and tired as I am and now has a constant smile on her face.

Soun is starting to really spar with her after she slammed him into the wall and berated him for neglecting the three of you for so long. After he hit the wall for the third time he actually started to get serious in his sparring. He is good, not at the level of Elder Cologne or Ranma, but good.

I passed your message to Ryu and after a few telephone calls found out Genma made deals with some very bad people. At night from now on either Ryu or Viper will be here and during the day we maintain a closer watch than before.

Ryouga is aware of where he is now but not why yet. He is helping Shampoo with the cleaning and clearing the tables during the busy part of the day. One man grabbed Shampoo and before she could do anything Ryouga had taken his hand of her in a not so gentle manner and was holding him off the floor. Elder Cologne told him he was no longer welcome and not to come back then Ryouga calmly threw across the street.

Uc-chans is closed for the duration although she cooks and waits tables in the Nekohaten. Uc-chans old customers have followed her to the Nekohaten and brought their friends with them. Business has really picked up enough that I find myself helping out quite often.

Akane still flares up when she sees Ryouga but is controlling it better. Soun is back to teaching her forms and has stopped her brick breaking making her spar instead. Every time she starts to get to aggressive or wild he stops the sparring and makes her meditate explaining that martial arts controlled directed force not brute strength.

I'm glad to hear the surgery was successful and wish I could have been there. I miss you both so much and long to see you again but it is apparent we are being watched. We haven't identified the watchers yet, they stay at a distance. Elder Cologne says it is not Mousse.

I love you and wish I could be there

Nodoka


	3. Tattered Mist letters 003

DISCLAIMER: I neither own nor make any claim to **Ranma Nibunnoichi by Takahashi Rumiko. ** I just enjoy it. I also enjoy making up stories about the characters. I do not claim to be writing an official continuation of **Ranma,** if I did I'm sure the laughter alone would cause an earthquake. My characters will have a 'slight' tendency to be considered Out of Character and possibly a bit AU.

If I have spelt something terribly wrong please let me know. I hope you enjoy reading my attempt at writing. If you hate it then the correct option is to simply not read it. This story is fantasy and makes no attempt to be bound by the realities of life, if it did it would not be fantasy or at least not my fantasy.

I write for fun, I will update when I have the next chapter finished. I will do my best to make updates regularly but will only update when I am satisfied that it is ready.

Tattered Mist, the Letters

Dear Auntie

I so much want to cry and don't dare right now. Ran-chan woke up crying that something was wrong. The wires embedded in her body had caused such constant pain that she considered it to be normal and when she woke to find it not there she began to panic. What type of monster would inflict that type of pain on a child and then beat them for complaining about it. How awful her life must have been to think such pain was normal. She clung to me so hard that Dr Akira had to give her a tranquilliser so I could breathe without gasping. Dr. Akira is with her right now and a colleague that deals with trauma is on the way over. Nothing I could consider human would inflict such pain on a child. I can't stay away too long, she panics when I'm not there. I'll send you more as I get a chance.

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Dear Auntie

Ran-chan is sleeping right now, finally, and I've cried myself out, finally. Ran-chan had begun to panic when I left the room and when I re-entered the room Ran-chan was in my arms immediately. When Dr. Akira's colleague got here she managed to get her to calm down but not leave my lap. With a little prompting she started to open up and tell bits about her training. After Dr. Akira gave her another tranquilliser she started talking non stop. The doctor changed tapes in her recorder whenever she could get Ran-chan to take a sip of water. She talked for two hours straight, the cat-fist training was only one of the inhuman tortures she endured as training. Starvation, sleep and water deprivation and beatings were a constant. Interspersed were insane training techniques such as being tied and rolled down mountain slopes, being tied behind a train to build endurance and increase running speed. Being beaten for not stealing enough food was normal, being beaten at anytime just on a whim was apparently normal. It's no wonder she didn't fight back against Akane or the others, she considered herself to be their property after all Genma had sold her to them. Dr. Akira had to finally give her a strong sedative.

Do not under any circumstances allow Genma near you. He murdered some of the people he sold Ran-chan to when he was caught him trying to steal her back. Ran-chan was threatened with your death to keep her silenced. The authorities have been informed of the murders and while Ran-chan did not know their names she did know the location, approximate dates and was able to give very accurate descriptions of the victims.

Oh gods I wish you were here, but if you're being watched it would put yourself and Ran-chan in even greater danger.

I'll post again as soon as I can.

Kasumi

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My dearest Kasumi

Elder Cologne read this with me, fortunately, and stopped me from doing anything rash. We won't share this with anyone else.

I met Ichiro, he came to warn us that it's the Triad that is looking for Ranko and Kasumi. Genma sold both of them this time. He brought with him two members of the yakuza who also happen to be looking for Genma. He made a deal three months ago to provide Ranko, myself, Shampoo, and the three of you to them for a price and then robbed their safe and took and other items that night. He killed several of their people when they caught his actions on security camera and tried to apprehend him. The fact that I made him ronin and we are hunting him too has kept us from sharing his fate if they catch him. They are highly incensed that the triad is here and have assured us that they will not be much longer. They are more highly incensed now that they know their actions would have brought them in conflict with someone capable of doing large amounts of property when angered.

Genma's evil has come to light with a vengeance and is likely to hurt even more people before it is over. Take care of my child for me and I will see you when it is safe to do so once more.

Mai knows the situation and will keep quite about you being there. Ichiro asked that you have Ranma train her when she is better.

With all my heart

Nodoka.

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Dear Auntie

Please have Ichiro send a confirming E-mail of the meeting. The doctors think that it might be the key to fully breaking Genma's mental hold on Ran-chan. The length of time they were looking for you may convince her that Genma has planned this all along.

I can leave her for only very short periods of time as she becomes agitated, even asleep, if I am not there.

With all my love

Kasumi

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Dear Auntie

Sorry about the delay in posting, a lot has happened and we are just now getting straightened out.

The E-mail with the date Genma made his deal with them did more than expected. When Ran-chan read them she incinerated the copies of the E-mails in her hand, her clothing and a large portion of her bed. I am very glad she was not in my lap at the time. It took us an hour to calm her down. I had to point out that she would have to be in a lot better shape to get back at him and that she could combine that training with your wish for her education.

Ran-chan had Dr Kino help him recall a large chunk of his life that had been a blank. It was a marathon session. Namiko, Maeda-san and I took turns just being there. When a particularly bad spot was coming up Ran-chan would ask us to leave and for Maeda-san to be there. What I heard was horrendous, no one will talk about what she said when we were sent out but several officers and Maeda-san had to be given a tranquillizer during one session. Two teams of police officers each with two detectives and a special representative from the Diet took turns and were there all the time and asked the questions.

We have returned to Maeda-san's although she will remain under both doctors care for the immediate future with weekly meetings to handle ingrained unresolved problems.

The school jumped Ran-chan a grade based on her latest tests, and I did well enough on my previous test that the second tests I had to take were to allow me to skip many first year classes. I will have to face a board and answer questions and prove my proficiency on a few things that the test could not cover but I have been accepted. Several of Namiko's friends are going to help prepare me for the upcoming boards.

I convinced Ranma to teach Mai and several other students with the simple explanation that teaching them would force her to re-examine and make corrections to some of the kata as she had done for me earlier.

She has already decided not to accept beginners. Any student she takes must have the equivalent of a black belt from another school of martial arts and prove their proficiency to her. She is talking to Mai right now and I am recovering from our morning work out. She is very demanding and has accelerated my training. She also insists that according to my argument, that since teaching others will reinforce knowledge in the art I will also be teaching.

I have no doubt that she will be at or above the level she was before in less than a month.

With all our love

Kasumi

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Dear Ranko and Kasumi

I stopped Nodoka from replying to your last missive. She is a formidable fighter when enraged and I see where Ranko received the abilities and determination she has. I will, over the next few weeks, release the blocks I set on her. She was ready to go to you then but as has been pointed out it would have been counterproductive.

Ichiro is agrees with me in this and advises caution. Training your mother is a delight and she is much further on than she believes, I have the bruises to prove it.

Please let us know what you find out when you can but try not to refer to the previous E-mail. We are well here and Xian Pu's training is progressing much better now that she has Ryouga to care for. Ryouga is beginning to respond to treatment but it will be a slow process.

Everything here is secure. If you need anything you have but to ask, I consider you my granddaughters in all but name. Your father is doing magnificent, Kasumi, as well as your sisters. Nabiki would make a great addition to my people and she is helping Xian Pu much more than she realises.

Keep safe and continue to make us proud.

Ku Lon

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Dear Mom

With the exception of the hole in my head I'm almost fully healed. It will take another week or two before I'm back to full strength.

It's good to hear that Ryouga is doing better and that Shampoo is taking such good care of him. I would have loved to seen Nabiki sparring with Soun. I wish I could be there. Akane will make a wonderful martial artist once she gets control of her anger.

Learning the art is far different from teaching it. I'm trying to learn how to teach. I have a lot more respect for the 'Old Ghoul' now. Please ask her if she could send me some waterproof after some of the workouts I've been doing it would be nice to soak in hot water and I don't dare change until I have both Ka-chan's and the doctor's permission. Have Ichiro send it to Mai for us.

Ka-chan is a great teacher; he is picking it up faster than I am. He is fun to work with everyone on the work crew likes him. They joke with us but are always ready with the proper word if he or I use the wrong one.

Namiko is letting me know it is time for me to go to bed, so I have to close. Be careful and keep us current on what is happening in Nerima.

Ranko

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My dearest loves

I am sorry for the length of time between posts and I imagine that you are just as busy as we are. The past weeks have brought many changes.

Nabiki says she thoroughly, totally and unequivocally hates both of you. Soun approves of your criteria for students and Ranko's reasoning for having you teach also. Nabiki now not only teaches but she is tasked with changing the kata to reflect the physical differences and abilities of women and prove them to Soun. She grumbles, rants and is happier than I have ever seen her. Akane has accepted that she has a lot of catching up to do and that her temper is and has been a detriment. She practices with Nabiki now and when she looses her temper she winds up in the Koi pond.

Ryu and Viper continue to improve and Soun is now teaching those police officers whose training meets your qualifications. They are charged with bringing officers interested in learning up to the levels that have been set.

Ichiro is going to hold an open Kumite here in several months. All participants must have the permission of their schools master to enter. The local schools and several local business men have convinced the council to allow the use of an abandoned piece of property whose structure is not only an eyesore but has become a physical hazard over the years. It will be cleared and an open pavilion built on it that will host the Kumite and other community events.

The representatives from the yakuza and the triads have come to an agreement to join forces in the hunt for Genma. They also met with Ichiro and the council and assured them that the Kumite would have no trouble from either organization, and asked permission for some of their top fighters to participate. Soun said he had no problem as long as the other criteria were met.

Shampoo has become adept at diverting Ryouga when he starts to become depressed and is making progress teaching him meditation to control his anger. She has had her status provisionally restored but will not compete in the Kumite.

An Amazon contingent is coming to compete under the understanding that they are guests and that kiss of death or marriage will not apply, although they may accept a marriage challenge if it is issued.

Akane no longer flies into rage at the site of Ryouga and is civil to him when they meet. They are far from being friends and Ryouga still has not regained all his memories. Nabiki has contrived a GPS that is set to the Nekohaten and is activated if he is more than three blocks from it. He wears it around his neck and it has led him back several times. He is also a local hero now. A man grabbed a child away from her mother and he recovered the child and dragged the man by his heels back to the Nekohaten where the man was arrested and taken to a local hospital for treatment. Ryouga was cautioned to limit his strength against non martial artists but several comments were made that he could have taken a less direct route back, several of the suggested routes included debris laden construction sites. Shampoo praised him and gave him a glomp that that would have broken ribs on a lesser man.

Mousse has not been sighted for the last three days and we have no idea what he maybe up to.

I think this about covers the recent events. I love you and will be glad when we can get together again.

Nodoka

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Dear Auntie

YES! Very, very busy.

Our day starts at five in the morning. We meet our students at an abandoned quarry almost two miles from the house. I teach the katas and do not explain why the women's are different from the men's. Three have made their observation of the differences to me and I have asked they not share it. Ran-chan is teaching Mai, three instructors from the police, an American transfer student, and five instructors from the JSDF including an American on detached duty. I am very happy to say all are very dedicated.

The American had a slight problem receiving instruction from such a small girl until she began to throw him around and penetrated every block he attempted. Sergeant Abraham and Mai are his best students, Lieutenant Ishiro and Captain Takeuchi are at or near Uc-chan's level, Sergeant Taiki will make an excellent instructor for beginners but he doesn't have the intuitiveness to advance much higher. The three instructors from the police are working with her to develop a regimen to deal with problems that are peculiar to them, she studied some cases that had had unsatisfactory outcomes. She wouldn't tell me what was in them but the haunted look was back in her eyes for two days.

At seven we rush back to eat and shower then rush to school. At noon Ran-chan leaves her school and meets me where we eat and then attends advanced calculus. After that she goes to an integrated computer science and I go to pharmacology.

We are able to get home by four where I join crews in maintaining the hiking trails and she goes to the office where she is currently updating the computers and installing remote sensors in areas where tourist are known to have had trouble. At eight we return shower quickly and eat. Then we study together until around ten and go to bed where the cycle starts all over again.

Ran-chan has taken out two more of Happosai's scrolls explaining that the first two were too easy to count as a challenge. She has modified the third scroll and incorporated it with the hidden weapons techniques and is not satisfied with it yet.

Saturdays after instructing our class, we have Drs. Akira and Kino and then a three hour session in the library for material we can not get on line. Dr. Kino has removed most of Ran-chan's fear of cats, however cats as pets will probably never happen.

We eat on our way back home from the library and work until six thirty. We go home clean up and find out what Namiko has engineered for us to that evening. Dr. Akira approved of the first outing and has mandated that we continue; charging Namiko to make sure that we do. Last weekend it was dinner and a theatre performance and then dancing. This weekend was the Officers Ball at the base in Okinawa where Dr Kino does consulting work with other trauma specialists. I am becoming a better dancer in self-defence. Ran-chan danced with the admiral and flirted outrageously. She gently and courteously declined several invitations from younger men and surreptitiously dumped a large dose of very hot sauce into the drink of an amorous idiot who would not take no for an answer. If I hadn't been training with her I would not have been able to see her do it. The Admiral's wife virtually monopolized Ran-chan when she wasn't dancing and we are invited back in few weeks when they have a combined officer's ball with the JSDF.

Hopefully by the time of the Kumite we'll be able visit. I do so very much want to see every one and I want to see how much Nabiki has improved. I'll have to compare her variations with mine so we can keep them standard.

It is two thirty in the morning now and Ran-chan is sleeping. I will encourage her to post when we wake.

I love and miss you

Kasumi

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Dear Mom

Kasumi provided you our schedule and there is not much to add to it.

When I tested the second time my math was much higher than expected and I had already covered the material on computer science they teach. They maintain close ties to the college and arranged for me to take courses there. They have college level courses in school for the other subjects and I am really enjoying it, there are only nine of us in those classes and the professors teach evening courses at college. Professor Ulbrech teaches language and expects us to be able to switch from English to Mandarin to Russian and back. He will write the assignment on the board in Cyrillic demanding an English interpretation of a Mandarin text. We debate contextual differences and the pit falls of word for word translations which often do not say the same thing at all.

Kodachi would enjoy our chemistry class which focuses on biochemistry with a nod toward the others. We are given a known compound and research its effects and then we have to list derivatives and their effects.

I have written three papers in world history so far and have had to defend my conclusions. We study the collateral effects of major events and the conclusions reached can be and often are polar opposites. He does not give us safe subjects and will assign us viewpoints to defend that are directly opposite of the paper we turned in last. History, he is fond of pointing out, is small collection of facts twisted unmercifully to meet the view point of the writer.

I did not flirt outrageously, Genieve would not allow it! And she's the one who passed me the pepper sauce, she couldn't reach his glass. Dancing is such fun! She only allowed me to dance with safely married men she approved of and many of my dances were with Ka-chan when I could find him, normally hanging out with stuffy old doctors.

Ka-chan is right we need to get together and consolidate the modifications we are making. Some of the hidden weapon technique is easy to use and incorporate. And it has practical applications too, your purse can't be stolen if it can't be seen. I shoved my ice-cream in accidentally when I chased a purse snatcher and it was still frozen when I remembered and took it out that night.

The hole behind my ear has shrunk to one and a half cm and Dr Akira says when it reaches half a centimetre I can change while she observes to be sure there is no complications. The last MRI shows no scar tissue developing that could cause problems.

I've surpassed my old speed with the Amaguriken and I can use it for my whole body as long as I don't do it too long. There has to be away to apply it only to the body part that is moving. I'm working on building my ki reserves on using ambient ki that was mentioned in one of Happosai's scrolls. I'm going slowly on that technique, the first time I consciously tried it I started to take in too much at once. I need to find a way to take in only what I'm putting out.

How is your training under "the Old Ghoul" coming. She is very demanding but she is also very good. I've never had a better instructor. Ask her for me if she knows anything about regulating the absorption of ambient ki.

Ka-chan didn't tell you but he is at the top of his classes and I am barely even with him in calculus, I have to work like everything to keep up.

I've taught Ka-chan the Amaguriken and he also can do a ki blast! I've also unlocked Genma's techniques, it might be unexpected enough to give Ka-chan time to get away. I'm playing around with it right now, I see some areas that I believe I can improve.

I love you so very much

Ranko


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